An exchange of gifts

GUEST EDITORIAL BY SR JUDY COYLE IHM

It is common during the Christmas season to exchange gifts, husband and wife, parent and child, friend and friend. The gift may be pleasing to us, and the giver gratified when we use it. Or it may be inappropriate. But once we have expressed our gratitude, the gift is ours to do with as we wish. The gift of Christmas is different, for what is given and exchanged does not end in the giving, nor can it ever be put aside.

It is our life given and exchanged with the very life of God. In the Mass of Christmas, the Prayer over the Gifts speaks of this Christmas mystery as O admirabile commercium,

O wondrous exchange. What is the wonder? What is exchanged? What of heaven is given to earth, and what of earth is given to heaven? We know well the gifts God has given to us in sending Jesus his Incarnate Son.

The gospel stories, the whole of our Catholic tradition tells us over and over again of gifts of creation and life, of grace and redemption, of healing and forgiveness.

In the death of Jesus, Gods own Spirit was poured forth upon the earth. We grow ever more deeply into these realities throughout our life.But what did we give to God in this exchange? What of our earth ascended with Christ into heaven? What of our humanity marked forever this Divine Child? And how did this exchange alter forever our relationship with the Godhead?

In his humanity, the infant Jesus knew our utter dependence, hunger and growth, maternal care and the tenderness and strength of human love. As a young child he absorbed the delights of play and companionship, of learning, parental obedience, and prayer. He knew the wonder of night and day, a full moon and burning sun, rain and a howling wind.

As an adult he saw our injustice, fear, illness, greed, and hypocrisy.

But he also knew our hospitality, devotion and unfeigned love. In his dying he absorbed our jealousy, false accusations, an unjust sentence, the betrayal of friends, and abandonment of followers.

Faithful to the end, in physical agony, he surrendered his humanity and our sin degradation and hope to the Father, who did not disappoint him.

The life of Jesus, our human life, begun at Christmas and transfigured in his Resurrection remains now forever in God. In this an exchange was accomplished, humanity and divinity made one. All that we are is now in the Godheadour hunger, our pain, our gratitude, our fear, our delight.

And all that is in us comes from the Godheadour compassion, our humour, our wisdom, patience and peace. In prayer and act, this is the reason for all our confidence.

Christ, whose coming we celebrate anew in this Christmas season, once came to make his home among us. Our home now is in him, we in God and God in us, a wondrous exchange, admirabile commercium.

Christmas calls us afresh, to pause in our daily routines to ponder the gifts we have been given, our humanity, Gods divinity, manifest in a manger, acknowledged by sheep and sages, sung by angels and shepherds.

O wondrous exchange,

O admirabile commercium